Think of it this way. You may not feel it but you are firmly in the grip of climate change. There’s nothing you can do to make it go away. It has a firm grip and it is going to tighten. It may not have gotten around to you yet as it has to others ...

PHOTOS: U.S. Climate Change Denier in Chief Donald J. Trump. (Photo: White House.) A woman is rescued from her Houston area home (Photo: U.S. Department of Defense.) “Wow – Now experts are calling #Harvey a once in 500 year flood!” So said an apparently astonished Donald J. Trump, First Tweeter of the United States and ...

PHOTOS: The magnificent Texas State Capitol in Austin – taller that the U.S. Capitol in Washington! Below: The interior of that Texas dome and some musicians making the scene in Austin, which is not only warmer than Edmonton, it’s more liberal too, and the sort of thing I had in mind when I made the ...

It has been fascinating to watch the Alberta New Democratic Party transition from being skeptical of oil pipelines as opposition to fairly effective advocates for pipelines as government. While the approval of the Trans-Canada Keystone XL Pipeline from Hardisty to… Continue Reading →

PHOTOS: Alaska Governor Bill Walker illustrates about how much is left in the northern state’s budget now that oil prices have gone south. (Alaska Dispatch News photo.) Below: The wild rose, official flower of both Alaska and Alberta; baked Alaska, going up in flames. Looks like Alaska is totally … baked. As in, done like ...

It’s pretty hard to exaggerate our indifference to early-onset impacts of climate change. They’re here, they’re worsening before our eyes and, more often than not, we ignore them. Some call it the “boiling frog” syndrome. The New Republic offers up a cautionary tale of drought-stricken Texas and the collapse of the state’s once legendary cattle industry. ...

After months warning Albertans that declining oil prices will have dire consequences unless we ‘tighten their belts‘ and make ‘tough choices,” Alberta Premier Jim Prentice has made some tough decisions of his own. Returning home from an official government visit to Houston, Texas… Continue Reading →

Walmart is best known for predatory corporate behaviour that damages communities and for the “interesting” people who shop there. One thing that Walmart does is pit one small town against the other to get cheap land and better tax rates, this sometimes means that an existing Walmart gets abandoned. A small Texas town decided to ...

Well I guess North Korea doesn’t have a monopoly on this any more. The great state of Texas wants to implant lies in the minds of its youngsters. Texas has proposed re-writing school text books to incorporate passages denying the existence of climate change and promoting the discredited views of an ultra-conservative think tank. The ...

The Fraser Institute: peddling conclusions that don’t match the evidence and have enough holes to store captured carbon. Actual Fraser Institute “fellows” may not appear exactly as illustrated. Below: A piece of Swiss cheese, which may actually resemble the claims in a Fraser Institute press release, metaphorically speaking. If the Fraser Institute told the whole ...

A worker in Fort McMurray prepares to drive this truck through the holes in the Fraser Institute’s “report,” which claims Alberta’s finances are in worse shape than those of places like Texas, North Dakota and Louisiana. Below: The Norwegian oil port of Stavanger, which, according to the Fraser Institute, doesn’t exist! Alberta should adopt a ...

Texas is an American state best known for its gun-loving, big truck driving, cowboy, remember the Alamo culture. It is the last place I’d expect high speed rail infrastructure to actually get support in the USA. The good news here is that not only are Texans in favour of high speed rail – the private ...

Canada or USA? USA or Canada? Texas Senator Ted Cruz, visible between the signs, ponders what he should do. Actual Tea Party favourites may not appear exactly as illustrated. Below: Mr. Cruz waves bye-bye to his fellow Canadians … maybe; Lord Black of Crossharbour. It’s said here that Calgary native Ted Cruise needs to make ...

I’m in Austin right now attending (and presenting) at the Captivate Conference and this city has come to impress me. While I’m at that conference about digital design there is another conference happening in Austin that readers of this site may enjoy: SXSW Eco. It’s an event focused on making the world a better place! ...

It is an interesting story. An unusual illness. Drunk without drinking. Having a beer gut took on a new meaning for a Texas man studied by U.S. researchers, who found that his overgrowth of yeast in his body was making him drunk because he was brewing beer from within. (Rick Rycroft/Associated Press “The man was ...

Yours Truly visiting the Texas House of Representatives in the State Capitol building in Austin, Texas – and thinking about what to say to Ryan Hastman on EdmontionPolitics.com. Below: The author with LBJ, sort of, and looking particularly fierce for the benefit of our Texan hosts. Last week, just as my daughter Lily and I ...

Apparently, some think so: And a Texas congressman claimed, incorrectly, that male fetuses of 15 weeks have been observed to masturbate, thus making abortion wrong. Tabatha Southey sums up the absurd spectacel of Texas legislators – in 2013! – trying desperately to shut down a filibuster by a lone senator: Late Tuesday night, close to ...

This week’s FFP is a new one-hour documentary by Garrett Graham (in collaboration with the Tar Sands Blockade) about the direct action efforts of activists in Texas, who try to stop construction of the planned Alberta tar sands pipeline. There is some seriously heavy-handed narration at the beginning, but if you can get through that, ...

alec-exposed-600×400.jpeg On July 26, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court ruled PA Act 13 unconstitutional. The bill would have stripped away local zoning laws, eliminated the legal concept of a Home Rule Charter, limited private property rights, and in the process, completely disempowered town, city, municipal and county governments, particularly when it comes to shale gas development. The Court ruled that ...

gas-emissions_1.jpg A damning new report from the Environmental Integrity Project (EIP) reveals some startling information regarding pollution in the state of Texas. According to the report, oil refineries and chemical plants in the state are releasing tens of thousands of tons of pollution every year, without as much as a peep from state regulators or ...